By John Y. Brown III, on Mon Feb 13, 2012 at 12:00 PM ET  There is an important difference between having talent beyond measure and being a person beyond reach.
I never thought that would be the legacy for pop star Whitney Houston. But it just may be.
I think it was 1985 when I first heard of–and later saw live at Rupp Arena–Whitney Houston. It was a remarkable and unforgettable performance.
She had a God-given gift–a soulful yet cheery voice that filled up the entire arena and left everyone in awe. She was also beautiful, graceful and seemed to “have it all.”
She was, so it seemed, untouchable. There was nothing critical that could be said of this pure-hearted girl raised in the church who was taking her gospel-trained voice and quickly becoming an international pop diva.
 But surely not the usual kind of diva, right? Whitney would be different–it was assumed.
But in the end, none of us are different. None of us transcend the temptations, the human failings and foibles that endanger us all.
Whitney Houston died yesterday far too young–and far too unrecognizeable from the person who we were introduced to over 25 years ago.
Why? It wasn’t Bobby Brown, or just drugs, or just ego and the inevitability of success gone to her head, or fans demanding perfection where there is only a woman.
Although Whitney Houston wasn’t “untouchable” she did manage to become “unreachable.” And that is when tragedies, like her untimely death yesterday, are made possible.
It’s not that celebrities are too different or too good or too anything to reach out for help.
It’s that sometimes they cross a line into “believing” they have become something else (maybe a brand, a business line, or just a bigger than life superstar) and have forgotten how to sidle up along the rest of us and say the simple–but painfully difficult– words, “Could you please help me?” And mean it.
By John Y. Brown III, on Mon Feb 13, 2012 at 10:00 AM ET  Daily Gratitude.
I try to do this daily.
Think of something–anything–I’m grateful for. Puts me in a pleasant and generous frame of mind for the day. And it’s easier than you think.
This morning I’m at a stop light and look up at a store sign, “Amish Hills Furniture Store.”
I think to myself that I’m really grateful I wasn’t born Amish. I have tremendous respect for the Amish people, their culture and their faith, but I would have had difficulty thriving within it.
I would have been bullied a lot had I been born Amish. For one thing most Amish men seem to wear a beard. For whatever reason I’ve never been able to grow a beard. I’ve tried but have several bald patches and can, at best, only grow a soul patch or Fu Manchu mustache (which is worse looking than a patchy beard).
Another reason I’m grateful I’m not Amish is they seem to spend a lot of time building furniture. I’m a consultant and lawyer and not good with my hands. I wouldn’t be good at making chairs and tables. I may have invented Amish Minimalism but wouldn’t have succeeded in woodworking.
And Horse and Buggies? I gotta admit I like to get places faster and have a mild allergic reaction to horses. And wouldn’t do a good job mucking the stables. I’m better with cars.
So by the time the light turned green, I was feeling a heavy dose of gratitude for being Presbyterian and not Amish. I do wish Presbyterian was easier to spell. But other than that I know it’s a much better fit for me—and something I’m grateful for today. Especially the beard part.
By John Y. Brown III, on Mon Feb 13, 2012 at 8:30 AM ET  Eureka!!
On Atlanta Concourse train and finally figured out a major conundrum about men and women and talking.
Recent studies show that contrary to conventional wisdom women do NOT talk more than men.
Then why do we assume they do?
I’m watching the men and women around me talking and the answer is clear. Women are into to it more. A lot more!! They are really engaged and talking like it’s a fun activity in and of itself.
On a scale of 1-10 (10 being highest) women feel about an 8 when talking (the equivalent of sunbathing).
For men, talking rates about a 2.5 (the equivalent of relieving themselves in the airport men’s room. Necessary but no external enjoyment apart from functionality).
In fact, one woman close to me on the Concourse appears to be saying a lot of words purely for the enjoyment factor alone. There is no other logical reason for her to be saying so many words in a row out loud except the intrinsic enjoyment. And her female friend and daughter are enjoying it too….what researchers call the “multiplier effect.”
So, woman don’t talk more than men….they just seem to because they get so much more out of it!! The are going at it with gusto and joy and men are treating talking like a learning disability they never overcame.
So, ladies and gents, when you are home tonight in bed talking to your spouse….remember, your wife is figuratively slathering on sun tan lotion all over herself and feeling like she’s on vacation.
And husbands are the metaphorical equivalent of being in line in the airport men’s room trying to patiently concentrate and get through this exercise with as little effort and mess as possible.
By John Y. Brown III, on Fri Feb 10, 2012 at 12:00 PM ET
TGIIST! Thank God it isn’t still Thursday!
I can’t say TGIF because Friday is just starting. It may be worse than Thursday for all I know.
TGIF is an aspirational thought that may or may not be correct. If Friday is a disappointment, I can still look forward to Saturday–or even Sunday if Saturday goes bad too– and not be wrong and regret saying TGIF.
I’m just overly cautious like that.
I mean, sure, I’d like to have a good day today and thank God for it and all that. But more than that I want to avoid making a mistake by getting my hopes up only to be disappointed.
For all I know….today (Friday) could be worse than Thursday.
But by saying TGIIST, I cover my bases. I really am glad Thursday is over. It was lousy yesterday. And by not getting my hopes up for today, I won’t be disappointed.
So, you know, TGIIST. That’s my way today of saying something positive that isn’t possibly misleading.
Did I explain that well enough or do I need to elaborate more?
Anyway, I guess what I’m saying is, if you want to have a good day today, go ahead.
But if it turns out to be a bad day, don’t blame me.
Blame somebody who said TGIF.
By Jonathan Miller, on Fri Feb 10, 2012 at 10:00 AM ET A11 is the one must-read page in today’s copy of The New York Times. That’s because No Labels’ full-page ad on The No Budget, No Pay Act is there, front and center.
The ad coincides with the release of the President’s budget this coming Monday, and to drive the message home No Labels also sent a letter to congressional leadership calling on Congress to pass the bipartisan No Budget, No Pay Act (H.R. 3643 / S. 1981), sponsored by Senator Dean Heller (R-NV) and Congressman Jim Cooper (D-TN). The Senate bill will receive a hearing by the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee in March. The press release is here and the complete ad copy is here.
By Jason Grill, on Fri Feb 10, 2012 at 8:30 AM ET  There is no doubt that this campaign season is already off to a very partisan and negative start. Add that to congressional approval ratings and trust in government being at historical lows.
What does this equal?
Time for a real change in the way government functions and an end to the divisive attitude on Capitol Hill. The good thing is a grassroots movement is already happening.
No Labels is a group whose message is simple…”Not Left. Not Right. Forward.” They have offered a 2012 Make Congress Work plan, which consists of twelve simple and straightforward proposals to break gridlock, promote constructive discussion, and reduce polarization in Congress.
 Nearly 500,000 citizens have already supported the plan at NoLabels.Org and the first measure of the plan “No Budget, No Pay” is set for a United States Senate Hearing on March 7, 2012 in front of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee. Its been over 1000 days since Congress passed a budget resolution!
The “No Budget, No Pay” solution is the only one of the twelve proposals that requires new legislation and its premise is simple, If Congress fails in its paramount responsibility to enact a federal budget, they wouldn’t get paid and if they are late they won’t get back pay. The bill already has bipartisan support on Capitol Hill and has been endorsed by Republicans, Democrats, and Independents.
Read the rest of…
Jason Grill: Time for a Change on Capitol Hill
By Jeff Smith, on Thu Feb 9, 2012 at 12:30 PM ET  It does bring him closer to the nomination, due in no small part to his uncanny good fortune. Let’s review.
The woman who rose meteorically to take the Iowa straw poll collapsed upon the entrance of a governor who offered the veneer of tea party rhetoric as strident as hers, but had the backing of mega-donors from the state with more Republican money than any other outside California.
That governor, who was thought to be his leading conservative opponent, turned out to have spent about as much time preparing for the campaign as my students spend preparing for pop quizzes.
When the governor’s lack of preparation became obvious, he was replaced briefly as the national frontrunner by a former pizza executive who made the governor look like Thomas Jefferson.
When the pizza exec showed himself to be completely unfamiliar with some of the most basic facts of foreign policy, and an impressively lecherous fellow to boot, a new frontrunner emerged, one whose national favorable ratings were lower than Nixon’s during impeachment. This man had a record of personal behavior that John Edwards might have been ashamed of combined with an unmatched proclivity to self-destruct, and he proceeded to do so in short order.
The former senator who rose in Iowa at the last moment to replace him as frontrunner had raised less than $1M at the time of his ascent, and lacked any semblance of national campaign infrastructure.
But to Romney’s great good fortune, the man less popular than an impeached Nixon regained enough momentum in the ensuing weeks to ensure that the previous man could not build on his Iowa victory – a victory which was, to Romney’s even greater good fortune, not made official until weeks later, dramatically reducing its impact.
I challenge even the most imaginative journalist or satirist in the nation to conjure another scenario by which the anti-Romney majority could have been so improbably failed to unite.
(Cross-posted, with permission of the author, from Politico’s Arena)
By John Y. Brown III, on Thu Feb 9, 2012 at 12:00 PM ET A true Fish Tale.
I don’t have a “Bucket list” just yet (I’m still not conceding death is an inevitable option) but do have a “Parent list,” a list of about 10 things I want to do with my children before they leave home.
This happened 7 years ago when my son, Johnny, was 10 years old. I had recently checked off “Flying kites” and “Going fishing” was on deck.
We decided on a Sunday afternoon and immediately started by packing a picnic basket. True, I had never really been fishing and only imagined what I should do…but a picnic basket seemed like a no brainer. My daughter made ham sandwiches and packed them for us.
On the way out the door I shrewdly remembered we’d be sitting in grass and grabbed a throw blanket for us to sit on while fishing.
We went to WalMart and bought fishing poles. We found a public lake nearby and set up our gear and lay down the throw blanket.
I tried to demonstrate casting for Johnny. “Watch me, honey. This is how you want to do it.” I shanked it into the marshy grass.
After untangling it I realized in addition to a flubbing the cast I had not baited the hook. I had forgotten to buy bait and had to improvise.
What to do?
Those ham sandwiches had stringy, soggy slivers of ham that I reasoned could be confused for a worm by a fish that wasn’t paying attention or had below average intelligence.
So, we baited our lines with ham and cast like two men who had never before had to eat what they killed. Our lines intertwined and as we tried to unravel them it began to rain…..
A Fish and Wild Life officer pulled into our lake and walked toward us and barked, “Excuse me. Do you have a fishing license?” I said, “Oh no! I didn’t know we needed a license officer.”
He looked at the intertwined fishing lines with soggy ham hanging from the hooks and then at the throw blanket we were standing on and said in an almost whisper,
“You don’t fish much do you, sir?”
There was really no point in me responding. It was what is called a rhetorical question—a questioning device that is rarely used by law enforcement unless the person being questioned has failed so badly at something that further evidence isn’t necessary.
He let us off with a warning and we packed our belongings and sat in the car waiting for the rain to let up and split the second ham sandwich.
My son noted, “I’ve never been arrested before, Dad.” I explained this whole episode would help with his “street cred” at school but not not give too much detail about the cause of our brush with the law.
We both seemed to like the idea of feeling a little like outlaws, especially if it meant not having to fish.
Afterwards we drove to a more modern place for fathers and sons– where we played video games and miniature golf and raced go carts.
None of which were on my “Parent’s List,” which I have since thrown away.
By Artur Davis, on Thu Feb 9, 2012 at 8:30 AM ET  In some alternate universe, President Obama follows up on his reform of healthcare and financial regulations by pivoting to an overhaul of public education in the United States. Instead of spending 2011 on the predictable, partisan ground of raising upper income taxes while growth is weak, Obama might have spent the year making a case that a vibrant economy demands a skilled, advanced workforce and that our outdated method of educating our children is inadequate to the challenge.
Alas, that is not the reality we live in. Obama’s signature plan of incentivizing states to embrace their own reforms, The Race to The Top, is being nibbled to irrelevance; rather than spending political capital to revamp No Child Left Behind, the administration is following the easy course of killing it softly with waivers; charter schools have gone two straight State of the Union addresses without being mentioned; and if the president believes that the stratification in the quality of our schools from one zip code to another is a major contributor to income inequality, he has scarcely said so.
 Had Obama adopted education reform as an agenda item, he would have profited from the Republican inertia on the subject. Whether it was Rick Perry on the days he remembered his pledge to abolish the Department of Education, or Newt Gingrich promising to downsize the department to a clipping service for inventorying data, or Mitt Romney trotting out old rhetoric about “local control”, the GOP presidential field has been one long yawn on the notion of education as a public priority.
It’s a bipartisan omission that signifies the power of each party’s political base. For Obama, bold action on educational accountability seems to be a casualty of a post debt-ceiling reelection strategy that is base reinforcement all the time. On the right, denigrating the public sector is easier work than laying out a foundation to make its elements, including education, more productive.
Read the rest of…
Artur Davis: Obama’s Education Downfall
By John Y. Brown III, on Wed Feb 8, 2012 at 12:00 PM ET I love Aesop’s Fables.
They are so wise and applicable to daily life—even several thousand years after they were written.
But I wonder sometimes if everyone interprets the morale to each story the same way I do.
For example, the fable of the ant and the grasshopper come to mind.
You remember, a grasshopper has spent the warm months singing while the ant slaved away and worked to store up food for winter.
When that season arrives, the grasshopper finds itself dying of hunger and upon asks the ant for food –and is rebuked for being lazy and unprepared.
I don’t know what other people got out of that story but I assumed the obvious moral was to network well with ants.
No?
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But surely not the usual kind of diva, right? Whitney would be different–it was assumed.
